


Cases

by TiffanyF



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-05
Updated: 2013-02-05
Packaged: 2017-11-28 08:51:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/672541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TiffanyF/pseuds/TiffanyF
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for a fan-appreciation project, this is the piece I wrote for Mark Gatiss. Mycroft visits Lestrade to speak on a very difficult case.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cases

There were cases that DI Lestrade never wanted to see cross his desk. Cases that would haunt him for the rest of his life, no matter how hard to worked to erase them from his mind. That morning, unfortunately, had brought one of them. The only thing he had to feel thankful for was that there hadn’t been any reason to bring in Sherlock. Just the thought of the consulting detective on such a case was enough to cause Lestrade’s legs to go weak. He stumbled into his office, not really focused on his surroundings, and sank into his desk chair with a weary sigh.

“Gregory.”

“Jesus, Mycroft, don’t do that!”

“Apologies. I had thought you saw me.” Mycroft Holmes placed a large cup on the desk. “From your favorite cafe.”  
Lestrade took the coffee, but didn’t lean back again. All of his instincts, honed by years on with the Yard, were screaming at him that something else was about to happen that he didn’t want to know about. He also knew, however, that Mycroft wouldn’t be in his office unless it was something very important. “Let’s have it then.”

“Have what?”

“Don’t mess about today, Mycroft. Just don’t. I have a thirteen-year-old boy down in the cells being charged for double homicide. I’m not in the mood to deal with any of your Holmesian madness.”

A flicker of some emotion dashed over Mycroft’s face too quickly for Lestrade to identify it, but he had a feeling that it was related to the word madness. Mycroft composed himself and sat up a little more in his chair, if that was possible. “Yes, about Thomas Black. I fear he’s being moved as we speak.”

“The hell? Mycroft, he killed his parents. You can’t just make him vanish like it never happened.”

“I can and I have, Gregory. Think for a moment before you reply, please.” Mycroft held up a hand to stall the words he could see about to flow over him. “Young Thomas did kill his parents, he has fully admitted to this fact. He never attempted to hide the information, did he? No, he even phoned and admitted what happened. Now, think of what will happen to him should he go to trial and then into prison.”

“I have been. It’s all I’ve been able to think about, Mycroft. He won’t survive. It’s a death sentence sending him off, but what else can we do? You didn’t see the bodies. There was barely anything left of the father.”

Mycroft nodded. “Rage. For Thomas to do something so severe he had to have been in a blind rage. He told you the reason, did he not? The abuse?”

“Yeah.”

“There is a program staring up in the states that aims to aid children like Thomas. He will be in a secure guarded government facility, Gregory. Don’t mistake that, it will be a prison of sorts, but he will be with other children who have suffered the same fate he has,” Mycroft said. “There are those in our government who are sponsoring the program, and wish for this young man to be the start of it.”

“What makes this program so special then?” Lestrade finally gave in and leaned back in his chair, sipping the coffee. “I like the idea of keeping him out of prison, keeping the kid alive, but how do we know that he’s not going to do something like this again? He needs to stand trial, Mycroft.”

“The program is unique, as far as I understand it. The children are counseled, given classes to help them earn their high school diplomas, teach them skills they will need to survive in the world once they are released,” Mycroft said quietly. “It is a new method of changing the world. Prisons are holding facilities, breeding grounds for the criminal element. These new facilities offer us hope, Gregory. How can we say no to hope?”

“We can’t.”

Mycroft nodded and stood. “I’ll ensure that you’re kept apprised of Thomas’s progress through the program,” he said. “You have my number, Gregory, if you need someone to talk to.”

“Mycroft.”

The elder Holmes paused in the door. “Yes?”

“Why are you doing this? It can’t just be because of one kid. There has to be another reason for you getting involved in all of this. Is it Sherlock?”

“No, it’s not my little brother. How can anyone turn their back on a child in pain, Gregory? The children are, after all, our future.”

“So what else happens with this program?”

Mycroft turned and looked back at Lestrade. “Help lines, web pages, on-call counselors, and even police officers to offer hope and aid to children who are abused and have yet to kill,” he finally said. “As I said, Gregory. Hope.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“In time, you’ll see it. Look to the future, Gregory. Hope is all we have left now.”

Lestrade watched the elder Holmes leave the floor and sighed. He wondered if he would ever be able to understand how the Holmesian mind worked. It wasn’t likely, but he would try.

**Author's Note:**

> The program Mycroft is speaking of is one I created while in university for a Justice Studies class.


End file.
